Self-Editing Tip #5: Put some TLC into Your Photo Selection
Horizontal orientation is best, photo credit’s a must!
Let’s talk about your images.
Under your title and subtitle, please put an image. It can be a photo or graphic or work of art.
Medium gives us a direct hook-up to Unsplash.com’s images, which come with a ready-made photo credit. There’s also a button on that menu that takes us to our own files for downloading images.
When you use something else, such as a photo you took, you need to provide the credit. Credit means who created the photo or work of art. Not who owns it. The artist. Because they deserve the credit. And it’s one of Medium’s house rules so we honor it.
Make sure you have the right to use the image.
This is important. You don’t want to be in violation of anyone’s copyrights.
If you need a specific image that Unsplash doesn’t have, like I did with my Josephine Baker story, check Wiki-Commons. Be sure and click through the image to make sure the license is one you can use or the image is in the public domain. Click on this link for a list of resources of art in the public domain.
It takes 75 years for a work to enter the public domain, be it print or visual. Keep that in mind.
Whenever possible, choose an image that’s horizontal in orientation.
Why?
Because you get to the story with less scrolling. It’s tidier that way.
Is this a deal-breaker?
No, definitely not. Sometimes the only image available of your subject is vertical in orientation. AKA portrait and landscape, if you prefer those terms.
But when you have a choice, please go for horizontal/landscape orientation. Like this:
If you’re familiar with Canva.com, you can upload a vertical image to Canva and lay it out in a horizontal or square format. I’ve done that a lot. I may need to crop the image, but it usually works fine.
What size should my image be?
Remember when we had three sizes we could pick for Medium images? Small, medium, and full spread? Then they went away.
Well, they’re back!
When you download your image, a black box appears, or will soon, with three sizes on them. Click on the one you want. Usually, a small or medium size is recommended for the lead image. If you put photos in the body of your text, use the smallest size so the image is within the text margins. Like the ones in this post.
But play with it and see what you think. There may be times when the giant size fits with your message. But be judicious about this. Less is usually more.
How ‘on the nose’ should the image be?
This is where your inner artist gets to shine.
Sometimes you need a very specific image. To illustrate the points you’re making.
Other times, you just need to illustrate the mood of your piece. This gives you a lot of creative leeway. Use it. Find an image that matches how you and/or your piece feel. It doesn’t have to be a literal depiction of what’s in your post. Let your imagination out to play here.
A third option is to think about branding.
This can be personal branding. Like the way Kelley Murphy uses a specific image-altering filter in Canva that makes her images look like they’ve been quilted. They’re soft, with lots of texture. Unmistakelably Kelley!
If I’m doing a series, I’ll look for an image that can appear on all the posts, but with variations on a theme. For this series, the idea was a dog reading. Since I couldn’t find a dog editing exactly.
I really lucked out for post #3 on white space and paragraphs, as the image had no background. Just a lot of white space. How cool is that!
Look for a quality image.
Photography is all about light. A photo can be washed out, with very little contrast. I prefer ones with dramatic lighting if at all possible. And vibrant colors.
This one is just a bit washed out. Not a lot of color contrast.
This one is lit dramatically so the color contrast is heightened.
Pay attention to your image’s background.
Make sure the background isn’t so busy it detracts from your subject. Unless that’s the effect you’re going for. The image above has a distracting background and is a bit washed out.
Do try to avoid obviously posed and embarrassingly overused images. Again, unless you’re doing it on purpose, usually for fun.
How many times have you seen this woman?
A Final Note:
The image is the next thing a potential reader sees after your headline and subheadline. It’s part of their decision — -to read or not to read — your post. Use that image to further hook their attention. In other words, don’t be predictable or boring. Have fun with it, but don’t stay up past your bedtime to get the absolute perfect photo.
Unless you’re like me and can’t help it!
P.S. People, especially children, and animals are usually more interesting than inanimate objects. But not always.
For more about how I approach editing your stories, see:
Here’s the complete set of Self-Editing Tips published so far:
What are you ‘too old’ or ‘too scared’ to do? Let me show you how!
Marilyn Flower is a sacred fool who writes every day — fiction, poetry, and blogs — inspired by a process called SoulCollage®. She’s the author of Creative Blogging and Bucket Listers, Get Your Brave On. Follow her Sacred Foolishness or SoulCollage® for Writers, and Stay in touch!